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The significance of bargaining in social interaction is widely recognized. The present article describes a pair of mathematical models of two-party bargaining. One model is a two-party version of the Bush-Mosteller linear operator learning model. The second model is a nonlinear operator learning model based on Duncan Luce's choice axiom. The adequacy of the two models is examined by means of a computer simulation of the models and a set of controlled experiments. The linear learning model describes accurately in all experimental groups. The nonlinear model is not as adequate in predicting trial by trial cooperation, but is equal to the linear model in describing agreement.

Three mathematical models of two-party bargaining are developed. Each of them is based on the Bush-Mosteller linear operator model of learning. The first model includes an assumption that the probability a negotiator is cooperative is subject to Bush-Mosteller learning. The second model is basically the same as the first, except learning is assumed to depend on the reward from the other and the type of stimulus (in the form of an offer) he presents. The third model assumes that the conditional probability the negotiator is cooperative given his last offer and that of the other party is subject to learning modification. The three models were tested by having nine experimental groups of fifty subjects each negotiate with a preprogrammed stooge. The data were used to estimate the models' parameters. Computer simulations of the bargaining based on the models and their estimated parameters were run. The results of the simulations were compared with the experimental data. The simulations based on first and third models successfully predict the probability a negotiator will cooperate and the trial of agreement in the experimental groups.

Abstract Bell's (1995) critique of our discussion of a technological science perspective for sociology is a helpful effort to maintain a balance between our emphasis on agency and creativity and on the constraining side of society. We emphasize agency as part of a dialectic between human effort and societal resistance for three reasons. First, it forces reconceptualization of the nature of the science of sociology by shifting from a positivist mode to one that is pragmatic. The meaning of scientific findings changes. Second, agency has been ignored historically while constraint has been over‐emphasized. We seek to establish a balance by reentering the notion of agency into sociological discourse. Third, agency is a mechanism for modifying constraints and solving the problems associated with social technologies. In the closing paragraphs of the reply, we suggest that the view under discussion be seen as an ethical pragmatism. Agency forces us to ethical questions and a pragmatic understanding of science.

Abstract The traditional positivist model is an inadequate foundation for sociology as a science. The phenomena of society differ from the phenomena assumed by positivism and existing in the world of nature in ways that prevent the successful use of that traditional approach. Agency, the ability to choose among alternatives where the choice makes an important difference, exists in social phenomena but has no counterpart in nature and cannot be dealt with adequately by positivism. A technological science perspective is suggested as an alternative for a science of sociology that can deal with the reality and importance of agency. Eight differences between the traditional perspective and the alternative are sketched. The alternative requires changes in the kind of generalized knowledge produced and the way it is produced, accumulated, and refined. The changes, though seemingly small, would produce a major reconstruction of much of sociology; such changes could result in important progress by the field of sociology.

This paper compares child mortality rates of Indigenous people with national rates. A long history of discrimination and exclusion experienced by indigenous residents of Mexico has created substantial disadvantage in terms of living conditions, education, and access to state resources. Recent policy efforts have been designed to address issues of poverty and inadequate health care. This paper uses data from the 2000 census of Mexico to examine: 1) the relative risk of child mortality among indigenous people, 2) the influence of living conditions, education and demographic characteristics on mortality differentials, and 3) the role of government programs in reducing mortality differentials. Results indicate that poor living conditions, low education and concentration in rural areas account for higher indigenous mortality. National programs have played a modest role in reducing mortality differentials.